Tempus
'Tempus '''is a recurring villain in ''[[Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman|''Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman]]. He was a dangerous sociopath from the future whose sole purpose was rule the world and destroy Superman and one of the few villains to survive knowing Superman's true identity. He was portrayed by Lane Davies. Personality Tempus is selfish, vain, power hungry and sadistic with an extremely evil perspective on crime. Also with his vast knowledge of the future, it makes him one of the most dangerous villains in any century. He just wants to be the ruler of everything and lets nothing and no one stand in his way, especially Superman whom he despises out of jealousy and for making his own future so boring. In Mr. Wells' own words he was: "A fiend beyond comprehension." History Tempus was born in a utopian Metropolis set possibly hundreds of years in the future that was founded on the principals of Superman and Lois Lane. In his own words it was "A world of peace, a world with no greed or crime, a world so boring you could blow your brains out but there are no guns. No works, no one argues, there are 9000 channels and nothing on." Tempus grew bored and fed up with the peaceful and unexciting Utopia, so when he was visited by a time travelling science fiction writer, he decide to make some changes. Season 2 Tempus volunteered to time travel with Mr. Wells whom he nicknamed "Herb" to Metropolis in the 1990s to prove that his time machine worked and when his companion left to ask Lois and Clark for help, he wondered the streets of the city, marvelling at how differant it looked and enjoyed mugging a nearby pedestrian. He then stole some weaponry from a gun store and then went to meet Wells who talking to Lois about his time machine that was powered by 24 carat gold she found very hard to believe. He introduced himself to Lois and told him that he was going to kill Superman by travelling to Smallville in 1966 when he first arrived on Earth as a baby. Holding Wells at gunpoint, he made him set the controls to take him to the set period, not noticing the gentleman setting the time for 1866 and had left plans behind for Lois and Clark to build another time machine. When they arrived Tempus was annoyed with Wells' apparant mistake, but decided to find some more gold to power the time machine. After a meeting with Jesse James and his brother Frank and robbing a bank to provide them with gold to power the time machine, Tempus and Wells went back to load it. Lois was there waiting for them and told them that she had grabbed the side of the time machine before it vanished, even though she and Clark had build another time machine to follow them. Tempus decided to strand Lois in 1866, commenting on his love for irony. Lois reprimanded him for going to Smallville in 1966 to kill Superman. Tempus then told her the truth about Clark and Superman being one and the same with the help of Wells' glasses, much to her surprise and horror; "Hello! Duh! Clark Kent is Superman!" Tempus told her that even though she is held in great respect in the future with books, statues, an interactive game and even a breakfast cereal, he saw her as the most galactically stupid woman who ever lived for never knowing the truth. After finishing loading the gold, he and Wells travelled to the time period he had requested. They found the baby Superman in the capsule he was sent in and carried him away to a place called Rocky Cove in the woods. Tempus tied Wells up in the time machine and placed many chards of Kryptonite around the baby's basket to erase Superman from the future. Mr Wells reprimanded Tempus for his cruelty and said that even killing Superman would never destroy the utopian future. Tempus shook this off saying he was even more boring than the novels he wrote. However Lois and Clark tracked him down. Clark was weak and beginning to fade away so Lois went on ahead. Lois stepped on a twig and arming himself with one of his guns set off to investigate. Lois beat him with a stick and with the help of Clark who froze Tempus' weapon, he was disarmed and then beat down. Lois went over to the baby Superman, threw away the surrounding Kryptonite and released Wells. Clark returned to normal and eventually leapt on Tempus, hoisting him up into the air. Tempus was then tied up to the machine by the freed Mr. Wells and Clark as Superman took his younger self to the area where his parents Jonathan and Martha Kent had found him on that very night. Having had enough of Tempus' behaviour, Mr. Wells decided to send him somewhere where he would cause no more trouble. Before the time machine vanished, Tempus asked Superman one last thing; "Why tights? Why a cape? You're a grown man, don't you feel ridiculous?" to which Superman then replied angrilly; "My mother made it for me." A defeated Tempus then travelled with Wells one last time. Wells stranded him in their previous destination of Smallville in 1866. He was placed in a mental asylum where he would do no more harm. He had stones thrown at him and called names by passing pedestrians. His shouts that he was from the future and he had to get out to build another time machine were ignored. He continued shouting for help but to no avail. (Tempus Fugitive)'' During his imprisonment, he wrote a diary of what had happened including Superman's true identity and many years later it ended up in the hands of a scheming business man named Jason Mayzik. He used it as blackmail against Superman to get what he wanted, but he was thwarted and Tempus' diary was destroyed. (And the Answer Is... ) Season 3 Tempus somehow managed to escape from the asylum and built a new time machine. He found an alternate version of Metropolis which was without Superman, much crime and corruption was taking place, Jimmy Olsen was the owner of the Daily Planet, Perry White is running for mayor, and Lois being lost in an assignment in the Congo long before Superman existed. Tempus chose that particular universe to rule with an iron fist. He took over a television station at Carlon Avenue as his main headquarters so that he would turn the citizens into vegetables and make them vote for him as well as opening several shops selling fire arms to them, even children. He used his time machine to go to the present day Metropolis and robbed some jewelry from a jewelry store. He bumped into the present day Lois Lane and took her at gunpoint to the parallel universe as well as finding his old friend H.G. Wells who had aged a few years older. Tempus was aware that Lois and Wells would be looking for this universe's Clark Kent and sent one of his men to spy on their progress. Apparently Clark's parents died when he was only a child, so no one was around to help him discover his superpowers or design his costume. The only person who knew his secret was his old friend from Smallville, Lana Lang who was now engaged to him and she told him that they would never lead normal lives if the world found out about Clark's super powers. Tempus then arranged for Lois and Wells to be kidnapped. Afterwards he positioned Lois on the ledge of a massive skyscraper, tied up and blindfolded in an attempt to lure Clark into rescuing her. He watched it on a screen next to a tied up Wells who was shocked and disgusted by his pleasure in torturing Lois. As planned, Clark came to the rescue and Tempus had one of his spies record the whole thing and then watched Lois changing Clark into Superman which was what he had planned all along as he would make Superman the enemy in this dimension while he became the hero which was why his posters and slogans kept on saying "Be prepared for the enemy". Tempus then called Lois in a disguised voice saying that his competition Perry White would die unless she gets to the television station straight away. He then speaks to one of his associates Major Dommo who gives him a dangerous explosive called the C7 that he was planning to use to make Superman appear to be dangerous. He slips the bomb into the front of Wells' jacket and has him locked in a room just behind the stage of the mayoral debate. At the debate Perry asked Tempus who this enemy was. Tempus replied that he hadn't had enough evidence to prove his theory until now and tells him and the rest of the audience that the enemy is a leader of an alien invasion. Some laughed, others thought he was crazy, but Tempus assures them that the alien was coming. Suddenly Superman appeared with Lois and tore at Tempus' poster revealing a hidden door of the room where Wells was being held at gunpoint by Major Dommo with bomb still inside his jacket. Wells warns Superman about the bomb and Tempus and Dommo use this to discredit the Man of Steel even more. Going back to his pedestal, Tempus pulls out a chunk of green Kryptonite to weaken Superman after he retrieves the bomb from Wells. He throws the bomb to one side and asks Superman in front of the audience if he really is leading an invasion against them. Lois denies it, saying Tempus is lying, but the crafty villain shows the audience the footage his spy recorded of Clark saving Lois, revealing that Superman had been hiding this secret from them all this time. He even fingered Jimmy, Perry and Lois as accomplices, saying that he was the one who would lay down his life and protect them. Suddenly Wells picked up the bomb that was now detonated from the impact of when Tempus threw the bomb aside and told Tempus it was now ticking. Tempus then goes back on his word of laying down his life to save the people by pushing his way through the terrified crowd to save himself instead, leaving Dommo and his men behind and ignoring Wells' pleas that he can't abandon innocent people. Lois meanwhile disposes of the Kryptonite while the impatient Tempus fires a gun in the air, telling all the people to move before they're all shot. Having had enough of Tempus' selfish behavior, Wells, in spite of his hatred of violence, strikes him to the ground. The bomb is then disposed of when Superman swallows it just as it is about to detonate and the citizens are very grateful and hold the Man of Steel in high regard even though they know his true identity. Tempus was then taken back to the original Metropolis by Wells and handed over to the police to be arrested for the previous jewel robbery. As he was pushed into the back of the police car, he saw that Lois had been returned there as well and was walking with her own Clark. With a snarl, he vowed revenge, saying that they would never keep him imprisoned for long. ([[Tempus, Anyone?|''Tempus, Anyone?]]) Season 4 Tempus may have been in prison, but he managed to place a curse on the newlywed Lois and Clark so tragedy would strike if they consummated their marriage. However H.G. Wells arrived to warn the couple and they travelled back in time to the 12th Century where Clark no longer had his super powers and was a Robin Hood-like outlaw known as the Fox the alter-ego of a knight called Sir Charles, Lois was a costumed version of Maid Marian and Tempus was Baron Tempos, ruler of the kingdom who wanted to marry Lois. Tempus wanted his most noble knight to fight the Fox, but Clark revealed to him his true identity and fought him instead. The Baron proved too strong and Lois fearing for Clark's safety agreed to marry him if he let Clark go. Tempos agreed as long as Clark left and never came back. When Clark, Lois and Wells arrived back in present day, they find things different with Tempus being king of Metropolis and engaged to Lois. Wells told them that because Clark had surrendered, history had been altered with people losing their faith in the cause for good so they had to go back and defeat Tempus this time except in a different time period. They travelled back in time to the Western 19th Century where Tempus was now a dangerous outlaw named Tempus Tex, Clark still did not have his super powers and was a gun slinging hero called the Lone Rider and Lois was Lulu who was being forced to marry Tempus so he could get his hands on her fortune threatening to hang Clark if she refused. Lois agreed and Tempus gave the same terms his medieval alter-ego had given and shot the noose Clark was hanging from, freeing him. But Lois escaped and rode away with Clark. Tempus called his band of outlaws to track them down and caught up with them but failed to recognize Clark this time who was disguised as a radio telegram operator who was told by Lois had saved her from the Lone Rider. Tempus then took Lois away again. Back in town, her threatened to kill her parents who were tied to a barrel of dynamite. Clark and Wells followed noticing that Tempus had a man named George with a camera even though cameras were not invented yet. Even more astonishing of all there was a chord attached leading outside the town connected to some phone lines. They followed them and found Lulu's parents who astonishingly resembled Jonathan and Martha Kent who were in fact Lulu's adoptied parents. When Clark returned and after giving Lois the sign that her parents were saved, she openly refused to marry Tempus. He then gave the signal for George to take the picture with his camera which was really a detonator for dynamite. The dynamite went off, but to his horror, Clark appeared with Lulu's parents still alive. Clark aimed one of his six shooters at Tempus, telling him he had failed. Tempus pulled out his six shooter and grabbed Lois using her as a human shield, but Lois elbowed him in the chest making him let go of her, whilst Clark disarmed him. Tempus tried to escape but Clark caught him and knocked him out with a punch. He then sent him to be arrested by the Sheriff who resembled Jimmy Olsen. With Tempus defeated, the curse was broken and Wells returned Lois and Clark back to the present where they were finally able to consummate their marriage. ([[Soul Mates|''Soul Mates]]) Episode Appearances Season 2 *Tempus Fugitive *And the Answer Is... (Flashback) Season 3 *Tempus, Anyone? Season 4 *Soul Mates *Meet John Doe *Lois and Clarks Trivia *Apart from Lex Luthor, Tempus was the longest recurring villain in the series and became a very popular fan favourite. *"Tempus" is the Latin word for time. Gallery Category:Characters Category:Villains Category:Season 2 Characters Category:Season 3 Characters Category:Season 4 Characters Category:Recurring Villains